OBJECTIVE-COUPLED PLANAR ILLUMINATION (OCPI)

An Objective-coupled planar illumination (OCPI) microscope is a microscope that rapidly sections a three-dimensional volume using a thin illumination sheet whose position is rigidly coupled to the objective and aligned with its focal plane. This method offers superior sensitivity and temporal resolution over laser-scanning microscopy for imaging rapid events in large populations of neurons. The reduced photobleaching associated with the method also allows optical recordings to be made over long periods of time.